The Yucca Valley Trojans will host the Wilson Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The timing isn't great for Yucca Valley: they have been struggling with four straight losses at home, while Wilson has snatched up four consecutive wins on the road.
Yucca Valley will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Twentynine Palms, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. Yucca Valley claimed a resounding 43-14 victory over Twentynine Palms. That looming 43-14 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Trojans yet this season.
Yucca Valley had a senior duo take command as Michael Ramos Jr rushed for 43 yards and two touchdowns and Anthony Love rushed for 73 yards and a touchdown on only six carries. Ramos Jr has been hot recently, having posted two or more rushing touchdowns the last four times he's played. Roderick Rogers did his part to keep the secondary busy, picking up 96 receiving yards.
Yucca Valley didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off six passes before the game was over. It was truly a group effort as Ramos Jr, Steven Castro, and Aiden Pope picked up one apiece. Another thorn in Twentynine Palms' side was Brody Herrera, who forced a fumble and made 18 total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, you can't lose the matchup if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Wilson's strategy against Pomona last Thursday. Wilson never let Pomona onto the board and left with a 43-0 win. The game was all but wrapped up at the end of the third, by which point the Wildcats had established a 36 point advantage.
Dominic Ezeonye continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 158 yards and three touchdowns on only eight carries. His longest rush was for an impressive 59 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total.
Wilson was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 300 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 277 rushing yards in five consecutive matches.
Wilson wouldn't let Pomona keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Wilson can thank Johnathan Silanskis and Derek Hernandez for forcing both of them.
Yucca Valley's record is now 4-5. As for Wilson, their record is now 9-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Yucca Valley has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 172 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Wilson struggles in that department as they've been averaging 296.9. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Yucca Valley against Wilson in their previous meeting back in November of 2023, as the squad secured a 49-21 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Ezeonye, who rushed for 203 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 11.9 yards per carry. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Yucca Valley still be able to contain Ezeonye? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
